...punishment as unconstitutional on the basis of “cruel and unusual punishment” (Eighth Amendment) in the Furman v. Georgia case. The court argued that the death penalty was being used in a discriminatory way, which is only one of the many problems concerning capital punishment. Other factors working against the death penalty is the argument of deterrence, costs, and sentencing errors. Shortly after the Furman v. Georgia trial, another case reinstated the death penalty, Gregg v. Georgia (1976). Some people who approve of capital punishment argue against the “cruel and unusual” punishment of those against the death penalty by using a three tests designed to determine if the punishment legally stays within...
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...Furman v. Georgia Death Penalty Furman v. Georgia Death Penalty University of Phoenix Cultural Diversity in Criminal Justice University of Phoenix Cultural Diversity in Criminal Justice The Furman v. Georgia case states that the United States Supreme Court rules that capital punishment was not constitutional. There were five justices that had come together in this ruling and together they thought that capital punishment was to be banned in the United States. On August 11th, 1967 Micke William Jr. woke up when he heard noises in his house. When he got up he went to see where the noises were coming from and he ended up finding Henry Furman in his kitchen. Furman, an uneducated African American, broke into the kitchen with a gun (Smith 2008). When Furman realized that he had been spotted by Micke he ran for it while he fired a shot at Micke. The shot that was fired got Micke in the chest and it killed him instantly. His family immediately called the police. When the police reported to the scene they searched the house and the neighborhood. They ended up finding Furman in the neighborhood with the murder weapon where he was arrested and charged with the murder of Micke William Jr. The court ordered that Furman have a psychological exam done before the trial is held. The results came back from the psychological exam stating that Furman is psychotic and mentally ill. Murder cases can usually last a good while and they can become complicated cases. The trial for Furman...
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...FURMAN V. GEORGIA Furman V. George Case Aldeen Dillon CJS/221 Mr. A. Hazen Furman was burglarizing a home when discovered by a member of the household, then tripped and fell. The gun accidentally went off and killed the victim. Should the death penalty be handed down or is it a violation of the eight and fourteen Amendments? In the Furman V. Georgia case, the occupants work in the light to encounter William Henry Furman burglarizing their home. At trial Furman said he was trying to escape, he stumbled and fell and the gun that he was carrying went off accidentally and killed the occupant. His statement contradicted what he said before to the police; he said that he turned and blindly fired a shot while trying to escape. Furman was tried for murder and was found guilty based on his on testimony. He was sentenced to death, but the punishment was not carried out. As a civilized society, we ought to have in placed a system by which we protect our citizens from criminals who seek to do harm to the public. We have had a long history of trials and errors from incarceration in dungeons and jails, to capital punishment. Carried out by hanging, beating, and burning, sacrificing, lethal injection, electric chair, and the list goes on. The writer do believe that harden criminals who commit the most heinous crimes warrants that most severe punishments. However, it must be empowered with a blind eye for discrimination and other arbitrary ways of thinking. In...
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...“Death Penalty” Furman was a poor black man living in Georgia when he broke into William Joseph Micke, Jr’s house, Mr. Micke went downstairs to investigate and saw William Furman in his house with a gun. Furman began to flee the house but tripped in the process and fired the gun accidently shooting Mr. Micke in the chest and killing him instantly. Furman was later found by the police still carrying the gun and arrested for murder. This case is known as Furman v. Georgia and was taken to the Supreme Court on the fact that the death penalty in Georgia violated the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. This is a landmark case because “The significance of Furman v. Georgia is that this case was the first case that was ruled violating the Eighth amendment and that it halted every man on death row in the United States” (study). But before the case reached the Supreme Court the case went on trial September 20, 1968 where Furman pleaded mentally ill and insane, the court rejected his plea and found him guilty of murder. Then, Furman appealed his conviction and sentence, based on the death penalty in Georgia violating the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution . The Eighth Amendment says the federal government may not use "cruel and unusual punishments” (Henson). The case was later tried in the Supreme Court January 17, 1972. The justices who won majority and reversed the case were William J. Brennan, Jr., William O. Douglas, Thurgood Marshall, Potter...
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...The case that I have been referring to is the case of McCleskey v Kemp, 481 U.S. 279 (1987). This case has held high significance in the legal and social communities. The reason it was so significant was because it was the first case that the plaintiff provided a scientific study to back up their claims that racial discrimination is prevalent in the death sentencing process. It was also significant because it exposed the Supreme Court’s failure to take action against this issue. Fifteen years previously the Supreme Court reviewed the case of Furman v Georgia, 480 U.S. 238 (1972) that highlighted a similar issue. The case resulted in different opinions among the majority of the justices and no clear remedy on how to fix the issue at hand. The McCleskey v Kemp case is the...
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... it is still a part of our mostly successful judicial system. It is true, the eighth amendment may only seem important for criminals it is actually relevant to those accused of a crime, which according to a study .5% or close to 10,000 convictions are of innocent people every year (Spring). So this amendment is relevant to everyone capable of being falsely accused of a crime. If by chance a falsely accused and convicted man is released he could potentially sue for hundreds of thousands of dollars, if he was tortured for the duration of his sentence he could, and most definitely would, sue the state for billions....
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...Douglas S. Coppin The Effects of Capital Punishments NIC / Executive Leadership June 2013 Evidence-Based Practice in the Criminal Justice System The phrase “because we have always done it that way” universally is no longer acceptable as it pertains to working in many sectors of the work-force, especially within the criminal justice system. Constant financial pressure to streamline budgets, coupled with ever-changing political climates have forced criminal justice organizations to embrace evidence-based concepts and practices. Evidence-based practice is defined as the use of practices that have been scientifically tested and proven effective. In simple terms, doing what works. This has led to drastic changes in various sectors from police operations, probation, sentencing, etc. When examining capital punishment the first question that must be asked is why do we do it? Is it simply a universal response to an atrocious act committed by an offender? If so, then there is no need to look any further. However, thousands of capital offense convictions are handed down annually in the U.S., yet most do not result in death penalty sentences. Therefore the only logical conclusion is that there is much more complexities in play once the state hands down capital punishment. Possible Effects of Capital Punishments at a Glance By and large, capital punishment in the United States is handed down to those offenders that are found guilty of homicide. Although not limited...
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...depravity and that long-term death row convicts are particularly prone to become mentally unstable. This condition is commonly known as death row phenomenon. In severe cases, some convicts may try committing suicide. Issues relating to the administration of capital punishment are vast and varied. Often, talk about the use of death penalty concentrates more on sentimental arguments pertaining to the moral issue emanating from the administration of death penalty. This paper attempts to study the issues that surround capital punishment by making use of the system analysis approach. It shall endeavor to explore the dehumanizing effects brought about by the recommencement of capital punishment. While there are no clear-cut answers regarding the matter of capital punishment and death sentence, this paper will attempt to shed more light on the normally intricate social issue. Impact of Death Row on the Correction System In June 1972 in a case concerning Furman v. Georgia brought before the U.S. Supreme Court, the court submitted that capital punishment was unlawful and unconstitutional and revoked the state death penalty legislations across the entire U. S. Several death sentences were adjusted to life imprisonment. The Supreme Court however, in 1976 rescinded its previous decision in the case of Gregg v. Georgia and affirmed the constitutionality of capital punishment. A year later, the...
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...punishing people who have committed higher levels of crimes. Although capital punishment has been around for centuries, the first known case of the death penalty in the American colonies happened in the James town colony in 1608 when George Kendall was executed for spying for the Spanish (Green, Melissa S.,compiler. (1998-2009). Focus on the Death Penalty). Capital Punishment is a subject in the United States that was and still is very controversial. Many people want capital punishment to be abolished but on the other hand there are a handful of people who want capital punishment to end. The purpose of this study is to show why capital punishment should be abolished. Capital punishment needs to be abolished because there are way too many cases and executions. During the time span of the Revolutionary war, capital punishment was widely accepted. During this time 162 documented cases of capital punishment were recorded. In the nineteenth century, following that era, capital punishment had increased to 1,391 documented cases. As of April 1, 2008, there were a total of 1,099 people who received the death penalty. The State of Texas had the most cases of capital punishment with a number of 405 cases (Bureau of Justice Statistics 1-2). That is way too many cases just for one state. The States of New York, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Kansas recorded zero cases of capital punishment. In today’s society, 38 out of the 50 states in the United States accept the capital punishment idea. In...
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...Public’s Conditional Response to Supreme Court Decisions” (Johnson & Martin 1998). This article specifically speaks to answer, whether the Court affects public attitudes when it makes decisions or initial rulings on a salient issue or subsequent decisions on the same issue. Johnson allows us to investigate the effect of the Supreme Court on public opinion, which offers the conditional response hypothesis based on the theory of Supreme Court legitimacy, and a micro-level social-psychological theory of attitude formation through his writing. To test this prediction Johnson analyzes public opinion data before and after the Supreme Court ruled in a highly visible abortion case (Roe v. Wade 1973), along with three key capital punishment rulings. (Furman v. Georgia 1972, Gregg v. Georgia 1976 & McCleskey v. Kemp 1987) When the Supreme Court made decisions, the public simply accepted them as legitimate. The reasoning behind this is simply because the Supreme Court is seen as the ultimate arbiter of the law. The model used by both Johnson and Martin (1998) is based upon two different theories. The first, since the public generally views the Court as a highly credible institution, individuals are more likely to clearly elaborate their attitudes toward an issue after a ruling. When the court makes its first major decision on a particular, the structure of public opinion changes in a manner consistent with the structural response hypothesis. Even if the individuals disagree...
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...Sally Sunshine Research Proposal Section 1 – Summary of the Argument In my research paper, I will argue the case for the abolition of capital punishment. Outside of the United States, there are only three industrialized democracies that still use the death penalty as part of their justice system (Japan, Singapore, and South Korea). The global movement toward peace can never be led by a country that continues to sanction killing. First, I intend to give an overview of capital punishment, including its history, Supreme Court decisions, and the general controversy. Next, I will present my case by establishing the most relevant points in my argument, including statistics that contradict capital punishment as a crime deterrent, evidence that shows the inconsistency in how defendants are sentenced to death row, and finally evidence of mistaken executions. For my counterargument section, I will acknowledge those who support the death penalty by highlighting their cogent points. The primary counterargument in favor of the death penalty rests on giving the families of victims a sense of closure and justice. This counterargument will be refuted using evidence gathered primarily through national studies and statistics. Finally, I will conclude by summarizing key points in the argument, by offering possible alternatives to the death penalty, and be reasserting the case to federally abolish capital punishment once and for all.Sunshine 2 I do need help with a few questions and...
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...head" (Latin caput). Hence, a capital crime was originally one punished by the severing of the head.” Execution of criminals and political opponents has been used by nearly all societies—both to punish crime and to suppress political dissent. In most places that practice capital punishment it is reserved for murder, espionage, treason, or as part of military justice. In some countries sexual crimes, such as rape, adultery, incest and sodomy, carry the death penalty. What does the death penalty do? Is it effective? Is it worth the cost? In United States, Michigan was the first state to ban the death penalty, on May 18, 1846. The death penalty was declared unconstitutional between 1972-1976 based on the Furman v. Georgia case, but the 1976 Gregg v. Georgia case once again permitted the death penalty under certain circumstances. Currently thirty five states plus the US military and Government's permit the death penalty, while fifteen states and the District of Columbia do not. Of the states where the death penalty is permitted, California has the largest number of inmates on death row, while Texas has been the most active in carrying out executions by executing an estimated 1/3 of all executions . There have been a total of one thousand one hundred and seventy-eight executions with 3297 inmates currently on death row waiting for execution. With no executions in 1976 and a spike of 98 in 1999 it has dropped...
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...want to put me on death row. They say that my crime was “heinous” and “cruel”. It’s been a long time I’ve been behind these bars, waiting for the government to make up its mind. I’ve been doing a lot of reading since and I’ve learned a whole lot about our justice system. I’ve been able to put my mind at ease, seeing what could be in store for me. I found this guy named Walker. He talks a lot about racial inequality and the idea that our justice system is racist, skewed in the favor of white men, specifically for the death penalty. He talks about the 1972 case of Furman v. Georgia which the United States Supreme Court declares that death penalty is unconstitutional on account of how it’s being administered at the time. This causes death rows across the country to empty out, and no one being fed back into the system to replace them. It was thought to be a precursor to abolishment of the death penalty, but that wasn’t the case. No, the Supreme Court decided instead to require many states to create new statutes which were to prevent discriminatory sentencing to death based on race. This resulted in two different types of statutes. The first kind required the judge or jury to impose death penalty if the defendant was convicted of first degree murder, regardless of race. The second allowed the judge or jury to impose the death penalty on the basis of certain crimes. This required the court to have a trial which first decided guilt and then decided to impose the death penalty or...
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...outweigh the death sentence Death Penalty America has always had a history of using the death penalty, but no subject has received greater debate. There are many reasons why the death penalty should not be used in America, first there is not data that shows that the death penalty acts as deterrence, second the costs of imposing the death penalty is astronomical, third, many see the death penalty as a form of retribution, and finally, the extensive appeals through the court. Although, it has since been reversed, Furman v. Georgia has shown that there are many cases in which there is a question as to how the death penalty is imposed, and can be considered Cruel and Unusual. (NAKELL, 1978) Many believe that the death penalty is a deterrence, however many studies on deterrence and the death penalty do not support this idea, in fact the murder rates in states that do not have the death penalty is consistently lower than in the states with the death penalty. Studies have also shown that of the 16,503 homicides in 2003, only 144 were sentenced to death, and of the 3374 inmates on death row only 65 were executed. When criminals commit crimes such as murder, the threat of execution does not enter their minds, especially those who may be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. In the end the death penalty is no more a deterrence than life without parole. However, once criminals are in prison serving...
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...Innocent people have been wrongly convicted and executed because of flaws in the system. The solution should not be to abolish the death penalty, but to enhance it and make it just. There are ways of fixing its flaws and making sure that capital punishment is used as effectively and efficiently as possible. Ensuring that every defendant in a death penalty case gets a lawyer experienced with such trials will ensure that the correct decision is made (“Death Penalty Recommendations”). Also, improving crime labs would drastically decrease the amount of wrongly convicted people as it would ensure proper and correct evidence. Another recommendation would be to give jurors special instructions regarding the shortcomings of human evidence, “such as confessions given in police custody and eyewitness accounts” (“Death Penalty Recommendations”). These specific recommendations, if implemented, would make the death penalty as the perfect solution for vicious criminals. PERSONAL STATEMENT I previously did not have a lot of knowledge regarding the death penalty. I knew the basics; such as its costliness and the...
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